Stanton Social

So I must admit, I ate pretty well last week. In addition to my great experience at Thalassa, I also made it to Stanton Social on Friday night, which has been on my list for awhile. I had heard mainly great reviews though some people complain about the noise volume. These people must have come to Stanton Social with different expectations. Stanton Social is a boisterous, fun, trendy yet classy environment where you go with friends to taste a multitude of unique dishes. You don’t plan a marriage proposal at Stanton Social. As long as this isn’t in the cards for your evening, I highly recommend a visit.

The menu consists of two long columns of small plates designed for sharing. Dishes range from $7-$18. Everything on the list sounds delicious so the task of picking just a few (since I was only with one person) was a lofty one. Here is a sampling of the roster: French onion soup dumplings, duck confit empanadas, lobster/chorizo/artichoke paella cakes, wild plum and brie quesadillas, a selection of pizzettes, squid lettuce wraps, wasabi pea crusted wild salmon, braised short rib tacos etc. etc. etc. Hungry yet? Luckily my dining buddy had been to SS a few times so she knew what some of the best choices were.

I perused the wine list with trepidation. Whatever we were about to order was going to be incredibly diverse. It was likely we’d have some seafood, some beef, some veggies, some rich sauces and some not. What wine could not only satisfy all of this, but do it without breaking the bank? I went with a Mezze Valpolicella (don’t remember the vintage). I wanted a light bodied red wine and searched for a great Pinot from Oregon or Washington State but found nothing. Valpolicella is rather light bodied and I thought it would sit quietly next to our food without loudly overpowering anything. I was correct

The waiter was perfectly capable, friendly, and familiar with the menu. I have no complaints on the service. After agonizing over the menu we finally decided on five dishes: the red snapper tacos, French onion soup dumplings, shrimp mooshoo, pizzette with blue cheese and turkey sausage and kobe beef sliders. Quite a spread!

Red snapper tacos- these were a great way to kick off the meal. The red snapper filling was sumptuous with fresh fish, hints of cilantro, and a nice heat that I tasted with each bite.

French onion soup dumplings- quite possibly the most delicious single bite of food I have ever had. If you go to Stanton Social YOU MUST ORDER THESE. The dumplings are served in an escargot palette. Each dumpling is served on a skewer and is filled with gruyere cheese, caramelized onions and a small amount of onion soup. More gruyere is melted on top of the outside of each and a crouton sits on each skewer. It really is an exact replica of onion soup and each dumpling is packed with flavor.

Shrimp mooshoo- good but not great. The shrimp filling for the mooshoo pancakes was a bit bland and I found myself dunking each in soy sauce to garner some additional flavor.

Pizzette- a perfectly thin crust and loaded with toppings. The turkey sausage was spicy and rich and the gorgonzola imparted a buttery, salty contrast to the pizza.

Kobe Beef sliders- another DO NOT MISS selection. These tiny burgers blew me away. The kobe beef was unbelievably tender and juicy. The burgers are topped off with sharp cheddar cheese, diced onions and a special sauce.
After this crazy explosion of flavors we opted for a peanut butter sundae to round out the meal. As my Father helped us secure a reservation at the last minute, the chef comped us another dessert. (as if we hadn’t eaten enough already) In addition to the sundae we had these hot sugar coated doughnut poppers which came with raspberry, chocolate, and caramel dipping sauces. Oddly enough when we were ordering dessert I exclaimed “Probably the one thing I’d say doesn’t appeal to me is that doughnut thing.” Sure enough, I was happily dipping away in no time.

When I go back to Stanton Social (and I definitely WILL be back), I’d love to go with a large group so we can really taste through the menu. I recommend the same to you. Care to join me?

Stanton Social: 99 Stanton Street (between Orchard and Ludlow)

Cuisine: Eclectic and International, small plates/tapas

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